1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to magnetic heads and in particular to a magnetoresistive head.
2. Description Relative to the Prior Art
Conventional playback of information recorded on a magnetic storage medium involves use of a magnetic playback head of the type that is responsive to the rate of change of signal flux contained in the storage medium. Because of their flux rate-of-change dependency, such playback heads cannot be used effectively for playback of low frequency recorded information and/or when the relative speed of travel between the head and medium is low.
The magnetoresistivity of thin single domain films has been discussed by Hunt in IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol. MAG7, #1, page 150, March 1971. Basically, Hunt utilized the magnetoresistance phenomenon exhibited by "ferromagnetic" thin films. Drawing on the work of Hunt, the invention, as will appear below, specially configures a thin magnetic film, and adapts such magnetic film to a flux sensitive head, doing so in a way that permits various advantageous procedures to be employed.